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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is coming off of a remarkable 2018 campaign in which he threw for 5,097 yards and 50 touchdowns en route to winning the NFL MVP award.
Most importantly, he led the Chiefs to an AFC West division title and took them all the way to the AFC Championship Game before they lost to the New England Patriots.
So, just what should we expect for an encore from one of the most dynamic players we have seen in quite some time?
Here are three predictions for Mahomes going into 2019.
3. He Won't Throw for 5,000 Yards Again
You can nitpick about how “bold” this really is, but based on Mahomes' cannon arm and how explosive the Chiefs looked all year long in 2018, some might say that the 23-year-old is a lock to throw for 5,000 yards again in 2019.
However, that might be setting expectations a bit too high.
After all, Mahomes just barely eclipsed the 5,000-yard mark in 2018, and we have to keep in mind that he had Kareem Hunt for most of this past season and Tyreek Hill for all of it.
Now, Hunt is in Cleveland, and we don't even know if Hill will play in the NFL at all this coming year as a result of his off-the-field issues.
So, the chances of Mahomes posting back-to-back 5,000-yard campaigns actually seem relatively slim at this point, because he will be without a couple of key weapons that he had this past year.
2. He Will Complete At Least 65 Percent of His Passes
What's amazing about Mahomes is that he throws long, but he also throws precisely. Mahomes completed 66 percent of his passes in 2018, and that was with him throwing some bombs down the field.
With the aforementioned Hill possibly out, Mahomes may be a bit more careful with his throws in 2019, which means we could see a lot more intermediate routes from the Chiefs' receivers. As a result, Mahomes will have some easier throws, which should translate into a beautiful completion percentage.
Can Mahomes pull a Drew Brees and complete 70 percent of his passes? Probably not, as even without Hill, Mahomes just loves the deep ball too much to completely abandon it, but you can bet that Mahomes will still be an incredibly accurate quarterback this coming season.
Let's remember that the Chiefs still have Travis Kelce, and with Hill potentially sidelined, you might see Mahomes make a heck of a lot more short throws to his reliable tight end.
1. He Will Score At least Five Rushing Touchdowns
While Mahomes is not exactly Lamar Jackson, he is still a mobile quarterback who can tuck the ball in and scramble every now and then.
This past season, the Texas Tech product totaled 272 yards and a couple of touchdowns on the ground, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. Expect to see Mahomes running the ball a bit more in 2019.
Why? Well, first of all, the Chiefs' ground game does not look all that impressive heading into 2019, as Damien Williams is slated to be the No. 1 back. While Williams is decent, he certainly isn't Hunt, so Kansas City might need to get some rushing yards out of Mahomes.
Second, again, Kansas City's aerial attack will be far less lethal if Hill is not on the field, meaning that Mahomes may have to use his legs to make plays a bit more in 2019 than he did in 2018.
No one is saying he has to rush for over 500 yards, but given that he is 6-foot-3 and weighs around 230 pounds, he can dish out some punishment, and he can score some touchdowns.
Expect to see Mahomes punch a few more scores into the end zone next season.
